Page 129 of Dear Grumpy Boss

I wouldn’t have had Elliot not told me what an idiot I was being. It was unfortunate he hadn’t been there last night. Then again, I really shouldn’t have needed him sitting on my shoulder, telling me not to leave Elise alone for an unacceptably long time.

I took each of her wrists and wrapped them around me, then I gathered her in my arms. She was finally looking at me, meeting my gaze. Her big brown eyes blinked up at me, and words were trapped in my throat. There was a lot I wanted to say. A lot I was feeling. But as I stared down at her, at the face I’d known for most of my life but had never gotten used to seeing, I could only think of one thing.

“I need to tell you I’m completely in love with you.”

Her fingers curled into my back. “What?” she breathed. “You are?”

“I know the timing is wrong for telling you this. I’m not trying to manipulate you into forgiving me. It’s the simple truth.”

She chuffed at that. “There’s nothing simple about you being in love with me. Jeez.” Her forehead knocked against my chest, then she tipped her head back and furrowed her brow. “Really?”

I nodded solemnly, bracing myself to be told to fuck off.

“Well”—she licked her lips, and her fingers dug into my back a little harder—“if you love me, you should dance with me right now and I’ll consider forgiving you.”

My phone was in my hand before she finished her sentence. Music was playing in the next moment. Something slow, so I could hold her against me the way Luca got to.

After a minute of dancing that was more like swaying, Elise spoke. “It was worse because you were with her.”

My head fell forward. God, what a massive fuck up. If she’d been off with Patrick—

No.

That I couldn’t contemplate.

Not right now. Possibly not ever.

“I get that. I feel nothing for her, but I completely understand why that compounded an already bad situation.”

“You were angry when you saw me with Luca.”

“I was.” My hand made long, smooth strokes up and down the length of her back. “The meeting with Peters was an exercise in frustration, then I saw you in Luca’s arms and it was more than I could reasonably handle.”

She rubbed her face back and forth on my chest before laying her cheek over my heart. “It might be wrong of me to feel or say, but I’m glad you were jealous. You deserved to feel a stab in the gut from seeing me spending time with another man.”

“Elise—” My hold on her tightened, and my jaw clenched.

“I would never purposely provoke that side of you. That’s not who I am. But” she lifted up on her toes so her nose was even with mine—“knowing youwerejealous makes me feel wanted by you.”

“I want you every second of every day. Do you know how often I want to tear a hole through the floor of my office so I can watch you all day?”

Her eyes rounded. “No. How often?”

A dry laugh burst from me. “A lot. I curse the fucking ground for keeping us apart.”

“That’s a little crazy, Westie.”

Westie.I never thought I’d be relieved to hear her call me that. That meant I had a chance.

“I’m telling you, Elise, I really love you.”

The corners of her mouth curved. “You can’t do that to me ever again.”

“I won’t.” I rested my forehead on hers. “My work has been my life for a decade. It’s important to me, but not more than you.”

“Prove it,” she challenged.

“I will.” Somehow. Some way. “Be patient with me?”

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